Behind Closed Curtains
he asked me
to close the curtains
before he would drop his pants
<>
I only close the curtains
to daytime sun
to too much light
never to the eyes of others
we’re on the 2nd story of my house
you can’t see in from the ground
from across street
not even from the 2nd story
of the house across the street
not that I’ve tried to look
at my house from their vantage point
I certainly can see nothing
when I look across to theirs
everyone has blinds
curtains
<>
besides
there no one in their houses
I’d care to glimpse
taking off clothes
making out
<>
I only close the blinds
to direct sun
I keep them open most of the time
if anyone can see in
they have to be working at it
if they are working at it
they are welcome to see me
dry my balls after a shower
so why worry
at this distance
with this light
they can’t see us
naked
<>
This piece, like all the Rules prompted pieces, is a couple of years old now. It is based on a real life event in which a FWB was paranoid that people would see us & my reassurances didn’t help. I turned the lights down – even if people could see in our bodies would be too dimly lit to see clearly.
When I was a drunk, darkness was vital to me. I know in one apartment I ended up covering my bedroom window with a blanket so that there wasn’t even a bleed of light. I had a towel I would often roll up to put at the bottom of the bedroom door. I slept in the pitch dark. I don’t really know when all that changed.
I wonder if voyeurs have a fear of being watched? Because we have become a culture of fairly shameless ‘look at me’ with Facebook, youtube, instagram, TikTok, Fans Only & more. We like to look & at the same time like to control what gets seen. Admonishing same-sex couples for daring to hold hands where innocent, unsullied, children might see them.
I recently watched, out of curiosity, Big Brother – Celebrity Edition. A show where the contestants spend 24 hours a day with cameras on them – there is live feed somewhere on line if you have to see what happens when it isn’t being aired on TV. The only place there isn’t a camera, not even night vision, is the toilet. Or perhaps that is on Fans Only. The show is, apparently, immensely popular & I’m sure it is mainly because people like to look. There are unofficial sites devoted to Big Brother Boobs (breasts) & one to Big Bother Packages (for people who need to know who is cut or uncut).
At least my FWB doesn’t insist we do it in pitch dark 🙂
TOpoet 